Lecture 7: Performance psychology

Question 1

What is being a performing artist?

Answer 1

Having a multifaceted professional identity like performer teacher, entrepreneur in a complex social environment (high-paced, high-demanding, physically, mentally and emotionally draining)

Question 2

What is demands vs resources model?

Answer 2

Argues that there are occupational demands like interpersonal, emotional, performance feedback which leads to control/autonomy or social support which results in wellbeing. This can also be influenced by over-commitment

Question 3

How does dance impact health?

Answer 3

There is usually insufficient recovery (long hours of training, tight rehearsal and performance schedules, train despite injuries and pain). High physiological and psychosocial demands can make dancers prone to mental and physical problems. Insight into physical and mental health needed to optimize and maximize performances.

Question 4

What are the consequences of health problems in dance?

Answer 4

Discomfort / exhaustion
Medical treatment
Performance decrements
‘Negative’ feelings
Absence from dance activities
All of which inhibit artistic development

Question 5

What are psychosocial stressors in dance?

Answer 5

Environmental
conditions
- poor facilities and equipment, crowed working conditions
Daily hassles
- financial concerns, unexpected obligations
Role work specific stressors
- perceived lack of autonomy and control, poor social support
(Major) life events
- death of a loved one, serious injury

Question 6

Mental health issues in dance

Answer 6

COVID-19 increased the prevalence of mental health complaints, which resulted in moderate to very severe loneliness

Question 7

What are the most common types of mental problems?

Answer 7

General anxiety (20%)
Stress due to external factors (18.3%)
Constant tiredness (16.7%)

Question 8

What are the possible interventions?

Answer 8

Awareness to: physical signals (injury, pain, tiredness and absence), mental signals (lack of focus, forgetfulness, irritability, changed eating habits and daily check-ins. Openness in the performance arts culture and increase mental health literacy

Question 9

Mental health and music performance anxiety

Answer 9

• 46% of conservatory student report poor mental health
• orchestra musicians: 90% report symptoms of music performance anxiety, 15-25% report severe and debilitating MPA
• comorbidities: GAD, SAD
• 64% of musical theater performers indicated significant performance anxiety

Question 10

How does the body respond to too much tension and stress?

Answer 10

Bouncing heart
Increasing blood pressure
Dry mouth / lips
Rapid and shallow breathing
Urge to go to the toilet
Cold, sweaty hands
Trembling fingers
Sickness
Stomach ache
Wobbly knees

Question 11

How does the brain respond to too much tension and stress?

Answer 11

Narrowing of thoughts negative
thinking strategies
Increased alertness
Increased concentration on fear of
failure
More rituals
General discomfort / restlessness
Avoidance
Distraction

Question 12

What is choking under pressure?

Answer 12

These are motor failures during performances in high pressure situations. Linked to: acute motor disturbances, increased anxiety, lowered self-confidence, reduced temporo-spatial precision of movements and sound quality. Regarded as a motor symptom of music performance anxiety.

Question 13

What is the heuristic model?

Question 14

What is dystonia?

Answer 14

These are abnormal muscle spasms (jerks) which are task specific and only in high-skilled tasks. The non-motor symptoms include: psychiatrics, cognitive, sleep pain

Question 15

What is musician’s dystonia?

Answer 15

1% of professional musicians affected. Includes: subtle losses, attribution to technical problems and intensification of effort leads to exacerbation of problems

Question 16

Risks factors

Answer 16

Classical music
Demographics (Male-female ratio 4:1)
Family history of dystonia
Age at the beginning of practice > 10
Personality: trait anxiety, perfectionism, need for control
Instruments: guitar, piano, brass (solo instruments)
Repetitive use
Extra-instrumental fine-motor burdens

Question 17

What interventions can be used?

Answer 17

• psychodynamic approach
• multimodal treatment model (personal and problem-oriented, psychodynamic and CBT)
• medication
• meditation-guided imagery
• mental training (CBT, mindfulness training, breathing, relaxation techniques, external focus)

Question 18

How can psychological training be used to improve studying for music performance?

Answer 18

Deliberate practice : planning, study goals & progress
Studying 20+5 ( Pomodori method)
External focus
Differential learning practice with much variation
Visualisation
Practice under pressure

Question 19

What has research found about virtual reality exposure training?

Answer 19

Led to reduced performance anxiety and improved performance quality. The performance lab can be used to mimic real life experiences

Question 20

What can dance be used for as an intervention?

Answer 20

Emotion (regulation)
Personality disorders
Mood disorders (e.g. Depression)
Autism
Neurodegenerative diseases (Dementia, Parkinson etc.)
Rheumatology
/ chronic pain / chronic fatigue
Cancer

Question 21

How can dance be used as an intervention?

Answer 21

Through social, thinking (cognitive), emotional and physical factors. Other forms of therapy include: music, theater, art, play, psycho-motoric

Question 22

What are the pitfalls of music performance?

Answer 22

• Its good for your brain, but can lead to over-practicing as you want to keep on producing positive emotions.
• training begins very early usually which can lead to people dropping out
• not limited to training amounts as you can essentially practice all the time also with no off-seasons
• very competitive as everyone wants to perfect themselves
• involves fine motor skills, sensory motor feedback -> using all motor sensors in a precise way
• precisely defined target parameters

Question 23

What was the prevalence of issues for those who were training dancers?

Answer 23

97% had health issues
45% had mental health issues

Question 24

How can we explain that dystonia is based on misconception?

Answer 24

Learned through brain plasticity, so can definitely be unlearned

Question 25

What are the sensorimotor factors and the psychological factors mentioned in the heuristic model?

Answer 25

Sensorimotor MPA: workload, long practice, technical difficulties
Psychological MPA: trait anxiety, low self-confidence, catastrophising, perfectionism
Sensorimotor CuP: overuse, biomechanical obstacles, controllability of actions, late start
Psychological CuP: fear-conditioning, reinvestment, over-focusing, cognitive interference
Genetics can then influence the dynamic stereotype and thus musicians dystonia